U.S. patent application number 16/903912 was filed with the patent office on 2021-12-23 for private contact sharing.
The applicant listed for this patent is International Business Machines Corporation. Invention is credited to Aditya Mandhare, Randy A. Rendahl, Stephen Paul Ridgill, II, Ashley Kristin Silva.
Application Number | 20210400130 16/903912 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 1000004925012 |
Filed Date | 2021-12-23 |
United States Patent
Application |
20210400130 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Ridgill, II; Stephen Paul ;
et al. |
December 23, 2021 |
PRIVATE CONTACT SHARING
Abstract
A method and system for obscured contact sharing is provided. In
an embodiment, the method includes receiving at a first user device
a request from a second user device to provide an obscured contact,
wherein the obscured contact includes a plurality of information
elements. The first user device receives from the second user
device the obscured contact and data about obscuring at least one
of the information elements of the obscured contact. Based on the
data, an operating system of the first user device obscures the at
least one information element from presentation by the first user
device to a user while at the same time being able to use the
obscured information element for a predetermined time. The
operating system of the first user device removes the at least one
information element from contact information storage of the first
user device in response to detection of a predetermined time
indicated by the second user device or a delete command from the
second user device.
Inventors: |
Ridgill, II; Stephen Paul;
(Raleigh, NC) ; Silva; Ashley Kristin; (Durham,
NC) ; Mandhare; Aditya; (Nerul, IN) ; Rendahl;
Randy A.; (Raleigh, NC) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
International Business Machines Corporation |
Armonk |
NY |
US |
|
|
Family ID: |
1000004925012 |
Appl. No.: |
16/903912 |
Filed: |
June 17, 2020 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H04M 1/2757 20200101;
H04L 9/3273 20130101; H04L 9/3297 20130101; H04W 4/80 20180201;
H04M 1/275 20130101 |
International
Class: |
H04M 1/2757 20060101
H04M001/2757; H04M 1/275 20060101 H04M001/275; H04L 9/32 20060101
H04L009/32; H04W 4/80 20060101 H04W004/80 |
Claims
1. A method for obscured contact information sharing, the method
comprising: receiving, via an electronic communications interface
of a first user device, a request from a second user device to
provide an obscured contact, wherein the obscured contact includes
a plurality of information elements; receiving, via an electronic
communications interface of the first user device from the second
user device, the obscured contact and data about obscuring at least
one of the plurality of information elements of the obscured
contact; based on the data about obscuring the at least information
element, obscuring, by an operating system of the first user
device, the at least one information element of the obscured
contact from presentation by the first user device to a user; and
removing, by the operating system of the first user device, the at
least one information element of the obscured contact from contact
information storage of the first user device in response to
detection of a predetermined time indicated by the second user
device or a delete command from the second user device.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of information
elements of the obscured contact includes a phone number of the
second user device.
3. The method of claim 1, wherein obscuring, by an operating system
of the first user device, the at least one information element of
the obscured contact from presentation by the first user device to
a user includes setting a flag for the at least one information
element indicating that the at least one element is obscured from
presentation.
4. The method of claim 3, further comprising: receiving, via a user
interface of the first user device, an input associated with
presenting the at least one information element of the obscured
contact; in response to receiving the input, checking if the flag
is set for the at least one information element; and in response to
determining that the flag is set, obscuring the at least one
information element.
5. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving, via an
electronic communications interface of a first user device from the
second user device, the predetermined time after which the first
user device is to remove the at least one information element of
the second user device.
6. The method of claim 1, wherein the delete command indicates a
new time that is different than the predetermined time at which to
remove the contact identifier from contact information storage of
the first user device, and wherein in response to receiving the
delete command, modifying a time parameter field for the at least
one information element to the new time if the new time has not yet
passed.
7. The method of claim 1, further comprising: receiving, at the
first user device, a command to unobscure an information element of
the plurality of information elements, the information element
having been obscured; and in response to the command, unobscuring
the information element.
8. The method of claim 1, further comprising: performing a
cryptographic key exchange by the first user device with the second
user device; and mapping, by the operating system of the first user
device, the at least one information element in an encrypted form
to a corresponding cryptographic key for decrypting the at least
one information element from the encrypted form.
9. The method of claim 1, further comprising providing by the first
user device to the second user device, a verification that a
telecommunication provider associated with the first user device
supports concealing the contact identifier of the second user
device from one or more call records associated with the first user
device.
10. A system for obscured contact information sharing, the system
comprising: a first user device comprising a processor configured
to: receive, via an electronic communications interface of the
first user device, a request from a second user device to provide
an obscured contact, wherein the obscured contact includes a
plurality of information elements; receive, via an electronic
communications interface of the first user device from the second
user device, the obscured contact and data about obscuring at least
one of the plurality of information elements of the obscured
contact; based on the data about obscuring the at least information
element, obscure, by an operating system of the first user device,
the at least one information element of the obscured contact from
presentation by the first user device to a user; and remove, by the
operating system of the first user device, the at least one
information element of the obscured contact from contact from
contact information storage of the first user device in response to
detection of a predetermined time indicated by the second user
device or a delete command from the second user device.
11. The system of claim 10, wherein the contact identifier is a
phone number of the second user device.
12. The system of claim 10, wherein the at least one information
element of the obscured contact is obscured from presentation by
the first user device to a user at least in part by setting a flag
for the at least one information element indicating that the at
least one element is obscured from presentation.
13. The system of claim 12, wherein the first user device is
configured to: receive, via a user interface of the first user
device, an input associated with presenting contact the at least
one information element of the obscured contact; in response to
receiving the input, check if the flag is set for the at least one
information element; and in response to a determination that the
flag is set, obscure the at least one information element.
14. The system of claim 10, wherein the first user device is
configured to receive from the second user device the predetermined
time after which the first user device is to remove the obscured
contact of the second user device.
15. The system of claim 10, wherein the first user device is
configured to provide to the second user device, a verification
that a telecommunication provider associated with the first user
device supports concealing the at least one information element of
the second user device from one or more call records associated
with the first user device.
16. A computer program product for obscured contact information
sharing, the computer program product comprising one or more
computer readable storage media having program instructions
collectively stored on the one or more computer readable storage
media, the program instructions executable by a processor to cause
the processor to: receive, via an electronic communications
interface of the first user device, a request from a second user
device to provide an obscured contact, wherein the obscured contact
includes a plurality of information elements; receive, via an
electronic communications interface of the first user device from
the second user device, the obscured contact and data about
obscuring at least one of the plurality of information elements of
the obscured contact; based on the data about obscuring the at
least information element, obscure, by an operating system of the
first user device, the at least one information element of the
obscured contact from presentation by the first user device to a
user; and remove, by the operating system of the first user device,
the at least one information element of the obscured contact from
contact from contact information storage of the first user device
in response to detection of a predetermined time indicated by the
second user device or a delete command from the second user
device.
17. The computer program product of claim 16, wherein the contact
identifier is a phone number of the second user device.
18. The computer program product of claim 16, wherein the at least
one information element of the obscured contact is obscured from
presentation by the first user device to a user at least in part by
the processor being caused to set a flag for the at least one
information element indicating that the at least one element is
obscured from presentation.
19. The computer program product of claim 16, wherein the first
user device is configured to receive from the second user device
the predetermined time after which the first user device is to
remove the obscured contact of the second user device.
20. The computer program product of claim 16, wherein the first
user device is configured to provide to the second user device, a
verification that a telecommunication provider associated with the
first user device supports concealing the at least one information
element of the second user device from one or more call records
associated with the first user device.
Description
BACKGROUND
1. Technical Field
[0001] Present invention embodiments relate to computer systems and
methods for contact information sharing, and more specifically, to
computer systems and methods for obscured contact information
sharing.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
[0002] Mobile devices may be used by users to communicate with each
other. A user may provide another user with contact information
(the providing user), such as the user's phone number. The user
that received the phone number (the receiving user) may use the
phone number to call the user at the user's mobile device. The
receiving user may use the contact information beyond the desires
of the user providing user. The receiving user may abuse use of the
contact information or may share the information with others
without the providing user's permission. Users may desire to keep
their contact information private and have more control over their
contact information for a variety of reasons, and may find it
difficult or cumbersome to have to use alternative contact
information or applications in order to mask their information.
SUMMARY
[0003] According to one embodiment of the present invention, a
method for obscured contact information sharing is provided. The
method comprises receiving, via an electronic communications
interface of a first user device, a request from a second user
device to provide an obscured contact, wherein the obscured contact
includes a plurality of information elements. The method also
comprises receiving, via an electronic communications interface of
the first user device from the second user device, the obscured
contact and data about obscuring at least one of the plurality of
information elements of the obscured contact. The method also
comprises based on the data about obscuring the at least one of the
plurality of information elements, obscuring, by an operating
system of the first user device, the at least one information
element of the obscured contact from presentation by the first user
device to a user. The method also comprises removing, by the
operating system of the first user device, the at least one
information element of the obscured contact from contact
information storage of the first user device in response to
detection of a predetermined time indicated by the second user
device or a delete command from the second user device. Embodiments
of the present invention further include a computer system and
program product for obscured contact sharing in substantially the
same manner described above.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0004] Generally, like reference numerals in the various figures
are utilized to designate like components.
[0005] FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic illustration of an example
computing environment according to an embodiment of the present
invention.
[0006] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an obscured contact sharing
handshake according to an embodiment of the present invention.
[0007] FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating private contact sharing
according to an embodiment of the present invention.
[0008] FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example where a sending
user device supports private contact sharing and a receiving user
device does not support private contact sharing, according to an
embodiment of the present invention.
[0009] FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a manner of
obscured contact deletion according to an embodiment of the present
invention.
[0010] FIG. 6 is a flow chart illustrating a method of placing a
private call according to an embodiment of the prevent
invention.
[0011] FIG. 7 is a flowchart of a method for obscured contact
information sharing according to an embodiment of the present
invention.
[0012] FIG. 8 is a block diagram of an example computing device
according to an embodiment of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0013] Present invention embodiments allow for contacts to be
shared privately by user devices for a defined and/or controllable
time. The obscured contact may include a plurality of information
elements, at least one of which may be obscured from presentation
by the user device with which the contact was shared allowed while
being allowed to be used by the user device for communicating with
the contact.
[0014] Present invention embodiments may be incorporated into
operating systems of user devices. Present invention embodiments
may allow for the ability to share obscured contacts between user
devices as a native part of mobile device operating system
software, without requiring users to download a third party
application and/or get a new or different information elements
(e.g., a separate phone number).
[0015] Present invention embodiments may allow for temporary use of
information elements of an obscured contact during which one or
more of the information elements of the obscured contact are
obscured from presentation by the device with which the obscured
contact was shared.
[0016] Present invention embodiments may enhance operating systems
of user devices to allow for local masking and mapping to obscured
contacts without exposing information elements of the obscured
contact.
[0017] Present invention embodiments allow for an information
element (e.g., a contact name) of an obscured contact to be shared
for a defined and/or controllable time to a user device of a second
user during which other information elements that may be shared
(e.g., phone number, email address, etc.) may be used by the user
device while being obscured from the user. User can selectively
obscure contact information while allowing communication, for
example, by text or phone, as natively allowed by the user device
without the user having to worry about the user who the obscured
contact was shared with being able to contact them after a desired
time frame.
[0018] An example environment for use with present invention
embodiments is illustrated in FIG. 1. Specifically, the environment
includes a user device 10 and a user device 12, which may be
operated by respective users. User devices 10 and 12 may take on a
variety of forms, including, without limitation, smartphones,
tablet computers, cellular telephones, personal computers, handheld
computers, laptop computers, wearable computers, integrated devices
combining one or more of the preceding devices, or the like.
[0019] User devices 10 and 12 may be capable of communicating with
each other to share obscured contacts. For example, user devices 10
and 12 may communicate with each other using a short-range wireless
communication technology, such as near field communication (NFC),
or using any other wireless or wired communication technology that
allows for contact information to be exchanged between the user
devices 10 and 12. Each of user devices 10 and 12 may be capable of
discovering one or more user devices that are nearby or proximate
with which to share a contact. For example, a user device (e.g.,
user device 10 or user device 12) may be capable of discovering
another user device (e.g., user device 12 or user device 10) when
the other user device is within range of discovery.
[0020] In an example embodiment, each of user devices 10 and 12
includes a private contact sharing component (also referred to
herein as an obscured contact sharing component). For example, the
user device 10 may include a private contact sharing component 11,
and the user device 12 may include a private contact sharing
component 13. Each of the private sharing components may be
embedded with or incorporated with an operating system of the
respective user devices 10 and 12. The private sharing component
may be embedded with the operating system of its respective user
device to modify the operating system's handling of contacts. For
example, the private sharing component may modify logic of the
operating system corresponding to the use and storage of contacts
and information elements of the contacts. This may include the
addition, removal, and/or modification of various fields and/or
parameters used in carrying out calls, texts, email, and/or other
manners of communication, and may include storage and use of
additional data and/or metadata of the contact and information
elements of the contact. The private contact sharing component may
be a module that may include one or more modules or units to
perform the various functions of present invention embodiments
described below. The module(s) may be implemented by any
combination of any quantity of software and/or hardware modules or
units, and may reside within memory (e.g., memory 835 of FIG. 8) of
user devices 10 and 12 for execution by a processor (e.g.,
processor 815 of FIG. 8).
[0021] In an example embodiment, a sending device sends an obscured
contact 14 to a receiving device. For example, if user device 10 is
the user device that is sending an obscured contact to user device
12, then in such a scenario, user device 10 would be a sending
device and user device 12 would be a receiving device. A user
device may be a sending device for a first obscured contact and a
receiving device for a second obscured contact. For example, if
user device 10 sends a first obscured contact to user device 12,
then user device 10 would be a sending device and user device 12
would be a receiving device, whereas if user device 12 sends a
second obscured contact to user device 10, then user device 12
would be a sending device and user device 10 would be a receiving
device. The receiving device may be configured to use the obscured
information without making it accessible to the recipient. For
example, operating system (OS) hooks may limit access to the
information to internal use where applicable (e.g., calling,
sending a text, etc.).
[0022] As shown in FIG. 1, obscured contact 14 includes at least
information elements 15 and obfuscation data 16. Information
elements 15 may be any type of contact information associated with
a user and/or a user device. For example, information elements 15
may include one or more of a phone number, an email address, and a
contact name. Obfuscation data 16 may be or include any information
about obscuring one or more of the information elements 15. For
example, obfuscation data may include one or more of a time
parameter, one or more information elements to be shared without
being obscured, one or more information elements to be shared and
obscured, and presentation parameters of obscured information
element(s).
[0023] When a first user desires to share their contact information
with a second user, the user may select (e.g. via a user interface
of the user device) a "share contact" user interface element, which
may initiate private contact sharing. For example, various options
may be presented to the user to set obfuscation parameters of the
contact sharing, including one or more of time parameters, one or
more information elements to be shared without being obscured, one
or more information elements to be shared and obscured, and
presentation parameters of obscured information element(s). For
example, the obfuscation data may include a time parameter that
indicates the time for which the contact is validly shared for,
after which the contact is deleted. For example, the obfuscation
parameters may identify which information element(s) are being
shared without being obscured and which are being shared and
obfuscated. For example, the information elements may include a
contact name, the user's phone number, and the user's email
address, and the obfuscation parameters may indicate that the
user's phone number and email address are to be obscured, whereas
the contact name is not to be obscured.
[0024] The receiving device receives from the sending device the
obscured contact and obfuscation data about obscuring at least one
information element of the obscured contact. An operating system of
the receiving device obscures, based on the obfuscation data, the
at least one information element of the obscured contact from
presentation by the receiving device to a user. As mentioned above,
the obfuscation data may include time parameters corresponding to
an expiration of the shared contact. In an example embodiment, the
sending user device may allow for existing time parameters to be
adjusted (e.g., lengthened or shortened) or removed, and/or new
time parameters to be set by the sending user. For example, the
sending user device may send a command to the device or system that
maintains or is responsible for maintaining the time parameter(s),
which in some embodiments may be the receiving user device and in
some embodiments may be a central service. The receiving device may
add the obscured contact to a contact list. Depending on the
obfuscation data, certain information elements may be obscured from
the user's view. For example, the user may be able to view the
contact name (e.g., in a contact list), but the phone number may be
obscured.
[0025] In an example embodiment, the contact or some or all of the
information elements may be stored on the user's device (e.g., on a
file system of the user's device). In such an embodiment, some or
all of the information elements and/or some or all of the
obfuscation data may be stored at the user device as an encrypted
value(s). For example, the phone number may be encrypted and stored
as an encrypted value, whereas the remaining information elements
may not be encrypted prior to being stored. In another example
embodiment, some or all of the information elements and/or some or
all of the obfuscation data may be stored separate from any local
storage of the user device. In such an embodiment, some or all of
the information elements and/or some or all of the obfuscation data
may be stored at a central service as a searchable values(s) (e.g.,
key/value pair). For example, the user device may store an
indicator that may be mapped to the information element(s) and/or
obfuscation data stored at the central service. In an example
embodiment, a combination of local storage of the user device and
separate storage may be used to store some or all of the
information elements and/or some or all of the obfuscation
data.
[0026] The sending device may include a contact sharing management
view that allows the user to see who and/or what devices the
contacts have been shared with and/or other information associated
with shared contacts. For example, the contact sharing management
view may allow for a user to see that the phone number of its
mobile device has been shared obscurely with three other devices,
Device A, Device B, and Device C, for respective times T1, T2, and
T3. T1, T2, and T3 may be the same time or a different time. One or
more of the times T1, T2, and T3 may be a default time (e.g., a
time automatically selected by default), may be selected from a
list of times, or may be any other suitable time.
[0027] In the example of FIG. 1, each of the user devices 10
includes NFC capability and an operating system. For example, the
logic of the operating system associated with contacts may be
modified to include a field for a contact to indicate that the
contact is to be obscured. The field can be checked before display
to see whether or not the contact is to be obscured. If the field
indicates that the contact is to be obscured and the current time
is one in which the contact is to be obscured, then the user device
may obscure the contact. For example, the user device may not
present the contact at all, or may present the contact in such a
way that it is unrecognizable (e.g., blurred, blacked out,
etc.).
[0028] User devices 10 enable users to send and/or receive obscured
contacts (e.g., information elements of obscured contacts) for a
defined and/or controllable time, during which some or all of the
information elements of the obscured contact may be obscured from
presentation by the receiving device while the receiving device is
able to use the information elements to carry out communication
tasks (e.g., sending or receiving texts, sending or receiving
calls, sending or receiving emails, etc.). For example, the user of
the user device that receives the obscured contact (also referred
to herein as the "receiving device") may be able to call or text
the user of the sending device at the phone number shared with the
receiving device without the receiving device presenting the phone
number.
[0029] User devices 10 and 12 may communicate with each other over
a network. The network may be implemented by any number of any
suitable communications media (e.g., wide area network (WAN), local
area network (LAN), Internet, Intranet, etc.). User devices 10 and
12 may communicate with one or more server systems that may be
local or remote to one or more of the user devices 10 and 12.
[0030] The user devices 10 and 12 may present a user interface
(e.g., a graphical user interface (GUI)) or other interface (e.g.,
command line prompts, audio prompts, etc.) to solicit information
from users pertaining to private contact sharing and using shared
contacts for communication.
[0031] User devices 10 and 12 may be implemented by any
conventional or other computer systems preferably equipped with a
display or monitor, a base (e.g., including at least one hardware
processor 15 (e.g., microprocessor, controller, central processing
unit (CPU), etc.), one or more memories 35 and/or internal or
external network interfaces or communications devices 25 (e.g.,
modem, network cards, etc.)), optional input devices (e.g., a
keyboard, mouse or other input device), and any commercially
available and custom software (e.g., server/communications
software, module, browser/interface software, etc.).
[0032] Referring now to FIG. 2, a diagram illustrating an obscured
contact sharing handshake is shown, according to an example
embodiment. In this embodiment, user devices 20 and 22 carry out
the obscured contact sharing handshake. As shown in FIG. 2, user
devices 20 and 22 each include at least a private contact sharing
component (shown in FIGS. 2-6 and referred to herein as PCS
component) and short-range wireless communication capability to
communicate with each other. At 201, obscured contact sharing
capability may be verified. For example, the user devices 20 and 22
may exchange messages that indicate that the user devices 20 and 22
support obscured contact sharing. For example, the user device 20
may send a request to the user device 22 for the user device 22 to
provide verification that the user device 22 has private contact
sharing capability. The request may include an indication that the
user device 20 has private contact sharing capability.
Alternatively, or in addition to the indication being included in
the request, the user device 20 may send an indication that the
user device 20 has private contact sharing capability separately
from the request. If the user device 22 has private contact sharing
capability, the user device 22 may send a response to the user
device 20 to verify that the user device 22 has private contact
sharing capability. If the user device 22 does not have private
contact sharing capability, the user device 22 may ignore the
request or may fail to send any response to the request.
[0033] In an example embodiment, the obscured contact sharing
handshake may be initiated in one or more of a variety of different
ways. For example, a user of the user device 20 may make a
selection via a user interface of the user device 20 to initiate
the private contact sharing handshake. In response to the
selection, the user device 20 may detect devices that are capable
of communication with the user device 20 and within communication
range. Devices that are within range may be displayed to the user
of the user device 20, and the user of the user device 20 may
select a device with which the user device 20 is to initiate a
private contact sharing handshake.
[0034] At 203, telecommunication service provider (e.g., mobile
carrier) compatibility with obscured contact sharing may be
verified. For example, each of the user devices 20 and 22 may
provide information indicating that its respective
telecommunication service provider is compatible with obscured
contact sharing. For example, the user device 20 may obtain
information that indicates that its telecommunication service
provider is compatible with obscured contact sharing and may send
that information to the user device 22. For example, the user
device 20 may store such information locally or remotely, and may
obtain the information as part of the verification. Alternatively,
or in addition to having the information stored, the user device 20
may send a request to its telecommunication service provider for
this information, and in response the telecommunication service
provider may send the information to the first user device, which
sends the information to the second user device. In an example
embodiment, a telecommunication service provider being compatible
with obscured contact sharing may include the telecommunication
service provider obscuring the sending device's phone number from
the receiving device's call records or logs.
[0035] At 205, country business rules for private contact sharing
compatibility may be verified. Such rules may be stored locally or
remotely or requested on demand. For example, a country business
rule or masking code may be verified so that it may be used, e.g.,
prepended, to an information element that is to be obscured when
used. For example, a country business rule or masking code may be
prepended to the phone number before a call is placed to the phone
number so as to signify to service providers to hide the phone
number from the user's account, display it as a blocked number on
the user's phone records, and/or otherwise obscure the phone number
from being visible to the user from service provider records.
[0036] At 207, cryptographic keys may be exchanged for use in
private contact sharing. The user devices 20 and 22 may use any
suitable cryptographic key exchange protocol to establish
cryptographic keys (e.g., encryption and decryption keys) for use
in sharing contacts.
[0037] FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating private contact sharing
according to an example embodiment. In this example, both user
devices support private contact sharing. At 301, a successful
private contact sharing handshake is completed. For example, the
user devices 30 and 32 may perform the private contact sharing
handshake described with respect to FIG. 2.
[0038] At 303, user device 32 may specify one or more time
parameters for the obscured contact to be shared. Similarly, user
device 30 may specify one or more time parameters for the obscured
contact to be shared. For example, the user device 32 may specify a
time T for which the obscured contact from the sending device is
able to be accessed for use by the receiving device and after which
the obscured contact is to expire. The user device 30 may agree to
the time parameter(s) specified by the user device 32 or may
disagree with the time parameter(s). The user device 30 may specify
a time T that may be the same or different than the time T
specified by the user device 32 or the user device 30 may not
specify any time. For example, the user device 32 may specify a
time T1 for its obscured contact to be validly used by the user
device 30, and the user device 30 may specify a time T2 (that may
be the same or different than the time T1) for its obscured contact
to be validly used by the user device 32.
[0039] At 305, private contact sharing and time parameter(s) may be
agreed to by the user devices. For example, user device 30 may send
a message to user device 32 indicating agreement or acceptance of
the time parameter(s) requested by user device 32.
[0040] At 307, using the encryption keys shared during the
handshake, the user devices 30 and 32 may carry out a secure
exchange of the obscured contact(s). For example, the obscured
contact may include a phone number of the user device, and the
phone number may be encrypted using the encryption key.
[0041] The receiving device may be configured to receive the
encrypted information elements and store the encrypted contact
details in a contact list. The contact list may include a number of
fields for each contact of the contact list. For example, each
contact of the contact list may include a field for one or more of
a name, a phone number, an email address, a private contact flag,
and a time parameter. One or more of the information elements may
be obscured (i.e., not displayed) to the recipient, however, the
recipient's user device is configured to decrypt the obscured
information element internally so that the sender may be called,
emailed, or texted without revealing the obscured information to
the receipt.
[0042] FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example contact sharing
attempt where a sending (sender) user device supports private
contact sharing and a receiving (recipient) user device does not
support private contact sharing, according to an example
embodiment. In this example, user device 40 supports private
contact sharing and user device 42 does not support private contact
sharing. At 401, a private contact sharing handshake fails between
the user device 40 and the user device 42. In response to the
failure of the handshake, the user device 40 may alert the user of
the user device 40 that the user device 42 does not support private
contact sharing and/or ask whether the user wants to share the
contact details without using the private contact sharing. For
example, the alert may be presented, e.g., audibly and/or visually,
via a user interface of and/or communicatively coupled to the user
device. Input may be provided by the user to indicate that the user
desires to proceed to share the unobscured contact (i.e., to
proceed without private contact sharing). If the user indicates via
the input that the user does not want to share the contact without
private contact sharing, then, at 403, in response to the received
input the contact sharing attempt may end without sharing the
contact. If the user indicates via the input that the user does
want to share the contact without private contact sharing, then at
405, in response to the received input, the user device 40 can
communicate the contact to the user device 42. After the contact is
communicated without private contact sharing to the user device 42,
the contact may be able to be presented in an unobscured manner by
the user device 42.
[0043] FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a manner of
obscured contact deletion according to an example embodiment. In
this example, the user device 50 and user device 52 have private
contact sharing capability. Further, in this example, the user
device 52 has shared an obscured contact with the user device 50
using private contact sharing, and the user device 50 stores the
obscured contact or has access to the obscured contact. At 501, the
user device 52 sends a preemptive private contact deletion request
to the user device 50. At the time the preemptive contact deletion
request is sent, the obscured contact is validly useable by the
user device 50. That is to say, the obscured contact has not yet
expired or otherwise been revoked. For example, the user of the
device 52 may desire for the obscured contact to expire prior to a
set expiration time. The preemptive private contact deletion
request may be sent using any suitable communication technology. In
an example embodiment, the preemptive private contact deletion
request may be sent using short message service (SMS), and the user
device receiving the preemptive private contact deletion request
may be configured to monitor SMS messages for such a request. In an
example embodiment, the preemptive private contact deletion request
may be sent using a Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol
(TCP/IP) request and the user device receiving the preemptive
private contact deletion request may be configured to monitor
TCP/IP requests for such a request.
[0044] In response to receiving the preemptive contact deletion
request, the user device 50 may delete the obscured contact shared
by the user of user device 50. If the user device 52 has an
obscured contact of the user of the user device 50, then in
response to receiving the preemptive contact deletion request, the
user device 50 may prompt the user of the user device 50 as to
whether the user device 50 should send a preemptive contact
deletion request to the user device 52. Alternatively, if the user
device 52 has an obscured contact of the user of the user device
50, then in response to receiving the preemptive contact deletion
request, the user device 50 the user device 50 may automatically
send a preemptive contact deletion request to the user device
52.
[0045] The user who shared the contact information may go into
their contact sharing management view. The user may select the
contact with whom they wanted to stop sharing their information
with and select an option to delete or remove the contact
information from the device if it is stored there or remove
permissions.
[0046] The user may also desire to modify the agreed upon time to a
different time (e.g., an earlier time or a later time). If the user
wants to extend the time that the information is shared for, the
user who shared the contact information may go into their contact
sharing management view and select the contact with whom they
wanted to extend the sharing of their information with and select
an option to do so (extend time, change expiration, etc.) along
with the new expiration date/time. Alternatively, the expiration
time may be removed and the contact may be shared indefinitely, or
in other words, no particular expiration time may be set.
[0047] In response to the extend/modify option being selected, a
notification may be sent by the user device to the device that the
contact was shared with, and the receiving device can update the
expiration date associated with the shared contact in the OS file
system of the receiving device. If a central service is used to
save the shared contact information, a notification may be sent to
update the key/value pair to have a new expiration date.
[0048] A message may be sent to the user device that received the
contact and the user device would process the message and remove
the contact information from the user device (including any
information saved directly to the user device). The message may be
sent from the sending device to the receiving device using any
suitable communication medium or media. For example, a message may
be sent using SMS or a TCP/IP request may be sent. If a central
service is used to save the shared contact details, the central
service would be notified that the user desires to expire the other
user's access to the contact information, and the key/value pair
would be removed for the user with whom the contact was shared
with.
[0049] FIG. 6 is a flow chart illustrating a method of placing a
private call according to an example embodiment. At 601, the user
device that is used to make the call (the "calling user device,"
not shown) has access to the obscured contact of another user
device 60 as a result of carrying out an obscured contact sharing
method. In this example, the obscured contact includes an
information element that is a phone number of the user device 60.
At 603, the user of the calling user device places a call to the
contact. For example, the user of the calling user device may
select, from a contact list, the contact the user desires to call.
Alternatively, a central service may be used that allows the user
to call using, for example, voice over internet protocol (VOIP).
When the user selects "call" on the calling device, the central
service would be contacted (e.g., the calling device would send a
message to the central service that the user desires to call the
contact). The central service may locate a key value pair stored
for the contact (e.g., may use information in the message to
identify the key value pair) and may place the call using VOIP. The
central service may perform a mapping to display the contact name
on the user device that is being called using VOIP, and may obscure
the number of the calling device from being displayed.
[0050] At 605, the PCS component on the calling user device checks
if the contact of the user device 60 is an obscured contact. For
example, the PCS component checks if the calling user device has a
"Private Contact" flag set for this contact. If the private contact
flag is not set for this contact, then at 607, a regular call is
placed by the calling user device. For example, the calling user
device may obtain the phone number that is mapped to the contact
name. If the private contact flag is set for this contact, then at
609 mobile carrier and country masking rules are retrieved, for
example, from the PCS component's local storage. At 611, the mobile
carrier is identified as XYZ and the country is identified as the
United States of America.
[0051] At 613, a masking code (e.g., *67) honored by the mobile
carrier XYZ in the U.S.A. may be appended to the private contact
before placing the call. Then, at 615, the private call may be
placed. In an embodiment, the masking code may be used to alert one
or more service providers that the private contact is to be hidden
from the calling user's account, billing records, etc. The mobile
carrier XYZ may accept the masking code (control code), and
suppress or conceal the private contact in reports, billing, call
logs, etc. The mobile carrier XYZ may provide a notification to the
user device that the masking code has been accepted.
[0052] In response to receiving the incoming call, the user device
60 may provide an alert that an incoming call is from contact name,
with the phone number of the calling device being masked. In this
example, it is assumed that the user of the calling device has an
obscured contact shared with the user device 60, and based on the
obscured contact of the calling device, the phone number of the
calling device is to be obscured on the user device 60. As a
result, the phone number of the user device 60 was obscured from
view by the user of the calling device, and the phone number of the
calling device was obscured from view by the user of the user
device 60.
[0053] FIG. 7 is a flowchart of a method for obscured contact
information sharing, according to an example embodiment. In step
701, a request from a user device to provide an obscured contact is
received. The obscured contact may include a plurality of
information elements. For example, a first user device (e.g., user
device 10 of FIG. 1) may receive a request from a second user
device (e.g., user device 12 of FIG. 1) to provide an obscured
contact that includes a plurality of information elements. The
first user device may receive the request from the second user
device via a short-range wireless communication technology, such
as, for example, NFC. The request for the user device to provide an
obscured contact, for example, may be part of a obscured contact
sharing handshake.
[0054] In step 703, the obscured contact and data about obscuring
at least one of the plurality of information elements of the
obscured contact is received.
[0055] In step 705, the at least one information element of the
obscured contact is obscured from presentation based on the data
about obscuring at least one of the plurality of information
elements of the obscured contact. For example, the at least one
information element of the obscured contact may be obscured by an
operating system of the first user device from presentation by the
first user device to a user.
[0056] In step 707, the at least one information element of the
obscured contact is removed from contact information storage. For
example, the at least one information element may be removed from
contact storage of the first user device in response to detection
of a predetermined time indicated by the second user device or a
delete command from the second user device.
[0057] In an embodiment, the method may further include receiving a
command to unobscure one or more information elements of the
plurality of information elements, and in response to the command,
unobscuring the one or more information elements. For example, the
first user device may receive the command from the second user
device, and in response to receiving the command, the first user
device may unobscure the one or more information elements. For
example, the command may include the one or more information
elements of the obscured contact that are to be unobscured or other
information that allows the first user device to identify which
information elements of the obscured contact are to be unobscured,
and in response to receiving the command, those one or more
information elements may be unobscured. As another example, the
command may not indicate any particular information elements to
unobscure, and by default, all information elements of the obscured
contact that are obscured may be unobscured in response to
receiving the command. When an information element is unobscured,
for example, the information element may no longer be hidden from
presentation to the user of the user device. Unobscuring an
information element that is obscured may involve, e.g., changing or
removing a private flag that is set to indicate that the
information element is obscured to indicate that the information
element is not obscured. Unobscuring an information element that is
obscured may involve, e.g., sending a command to a
telecommunication service provider of the user device for the
service provider to not obscure the information element from call
records of the user device. Some information elements may be
unobscured while other information elements may remain obscured,
become obscured, or be deleted.
[0058] For example, a user of the second user device may desire to
unobscure a phone number that has been obscured and may desire an
email address that has been obscured to be preemptively deleted. In
such an example, the user of the second user device may provide
respective input to the second user device that causes the second
user device to send a command to the first user device for the
phone number to be unobscured and to send a delete command to first
user device for the email address to be deleted prior to a
previously set expiration time for the email address. In response
to receiving the command and the delete command, the first user
device may unobscure the phone number and may delete the email
address.
[0059] Referring now to FIG. 8, a schematic of an example of a
computing device 810 of computing environment (e.g., implementing
user devices 10, 12, 20, 22, 30, 32, 40, 42, 50, 52, and/or 60) is
shown. The computing device is only one example of a suitable
computing device for computing environment and is not intended to
suggest any limitation as to the scope of use or functionality of
embodiments of the invention described herein. Regardless,
computing device 810 is capable of being implemented and/or
performing any of the functionality set forth herein.
[0060] In computing device 810, there is a computer system 812
which is operational with numerous other general purpose or special
purpose computing system environments or configurations. Examples
of well-known computing systems, environments, and/or
configurations that may be suitable for use with computer system
812 include, but are not limited to, personal computer systems,
server computer systems, thin clients, thick clients, hand-held or
laptop devices, multiprocessor systems, microprocessor-based
systems, set top boxes, programmable consumer electronics, network
PCs, minicomputer systems, mainframe computer systems, and
distributed cloud computing environments that include any of the
above systems or devices, and the like.
[0061] Computer system 812 may be described in the general context
of computer system executable instructions, such as program
modules, being executed by a computer system. Generally, program
modules may include routines, programs, objects, components, logic,
data structures, and so on that perform particular tasks or
implement particular abstract data types.
[0062] As shown in FIG. 8, computer system 812 is shown in the form
of a general-purpose computing device. The components of computer
system 812 may include, but are not limited to, one or more
processors or processing units 815, a system memory 835, and a bus
818 that couples various system components including system memory
835 to processor 815.
[0063] Bus 818 represents one or more of any of several types of
bus structures, including a memory bus or memory controller, a
peripheral bus, an accelerated graphics port, and a processor or
local bus using any of a variety of bus architectures. By way of
example, and not limitation, such architectures include Industry
Standard Architecture (ISA) bus, Micro Channel Architecture (MCA)
bus, Enhanced ISA (EISA) bus, Video Electronics Standards
Association (VESA) local bus, and Peripheral Component
Interconnects (PCI) bus.
[0064] Computer system 812 typically includes a variety of computer
system readable media. Such media may be any available media that
is accessible by computer system 812, and it includes both volatile
and non-volatile media, removable and non-removable media.
[0065] System memory 835 can include computer system readable media
in the form of volatile memory, such as random access memory (RAM)
830 and/or cache memory 832. Computer system 812 may further
include other removable/non-removable, volatile/non-volatile
computer system storage media. By way of example only, storage
system 834 can be provided for reading from and writing to a
nonremovable, non-volatile magnetic media (not shown and typically
called a "hard drive"). Although not shown, a magnetic disk drive
for reading from and writing to a removable, non-volatile magnetic
disk (e.g., a "floppy disk"), and an optical disk drive for reading
from or writing to a removable, non-volatile optical disk such as a
CD-ROM, DVD-ROM or other optical media can be provided. In such
instances, each can be connected to bus 818 by one or more data
media interfaces. As will be further depicted and described below,
memory 835 may include at least one program product having a set
(e.g., at least one) of program modules that are configured to
carry out the functions of embodiments of the invention.
[0066] Program/utility 840, having a set (at least one) of program
modules 842 (e.g., site module 816, evaluation module 820,
communications module 822, evaluation agent 824, etc.) may be
stored in memory 835 by way of example, and not limitation, as well
as an operating system, one or more application programs, other
program modules, and program data. Each of the operating system,
one or more application programs, other program modules, and
program data or some combination thereof, may include an
implementation of a networking environment. Program modules 842
generally carry out the functions and/or methodologies of
embodiments of the invention as described herein.
[0067] Computer system 812 may also communicate with one or more
external devices 814 such as a keyboard, a pointing device, a
display 824, etc.; one or more devices that enable a user to
interact with computer system 812; and/or any devices (e.g.,
network card, modem, etc.) that enable computer system 812 to
communicate with one or more other computing devices. Such
communication can occur via Input/Output (I/O) interfaces 822.
Still yet, computer system 812 can communicate with one or more
networks such as a local area network (LAN), a general wide area
network (WAN), and/or a public network (e.g., the Internet) via
network adapter 825. As depicted, network adapter 825 communicates
with the other components of computer system 812 via bus 818. It
should be understood that although not shown, other hardware and/or
software components could be used in conjunction with computer
system 812. Examples, include, but are not limited to: microcode,
device drivers, redundant processing units, external disk drive
arrays, RAID systems, tape drives, and data archival storage
systems, etc.
[0068] It will be appreciated that the embodiments described above
and illustrated in the drawings represent only a few of the many
ways of implementing embodiments for obscured contact sharing.
[0069] The environment of the present invention embodiments may
include any number of computer or other processing systems (e.g.,
client or end-user systems, server systems, etc.) and databases or
other repositories arranged in any desired fashion, where the
present invention embodiments may be applied to any desired type of
computing environment (e.g., cloud computing, client-server,
network computing, mainframe, stand-alone systems, etc.). The
computer or other processing systems employed by the present
invention embodiments may be implemented by any number of any
personal or other type of computer or processing system (e.g.,
desktop, laptop, PDA, mobile devices, etc.), and may include any
commercially available operating system and any combination of
commercially available and custom software (e.g., browser software,
communications software, server software, profile generation
module, profile comparison module, etc.). These systems may include
any types of monitors and input devices (e.g., keyboard, mouse,
voice recognition, etc.) to enter and/or view information.
[0070] It is to be understood that the software (e.g.,) of the
present invention embodiments may be implemented in any desired
computer language and could be developed by one of ordinary skill
in the computer arts based on the functional descriptions contained
in the specification and flowcharts illustrated in the drawings.
Further, any references herein of software performing various
functions generally refer to computer systems or processors
performing those functions under software control. The computer
systems of the present invention embodiments may alternatively be
implemented by any type of hardware and/or other processing
circuitry.
[0071] The various functions of the computer or other processing
systems may be distributed in any manner among any number of
software and/or hardware modules or units, processing or computer
systems and/or circuitry, where the computer or processing systems
may be disposed locally or remotely of each other and communicate
via any suitable communications medium (e.g., LAN, WAN, Intranet,
Internet, hardwire, modem connection, wireless, etc.). For example,
the functions of the present invention embodiments may be
distributed in any manner among the various end-user/client and
server systems, and/or any other intermediary processing devices.
The software and/or algorithms described above and illustrated in
the flowcharts may be modified in any manner that accomplishes the
functions described herein. In addition, the functions in the
flowcharts or description may be performed in any order that
accomplishes a desired operation.
[0072] The software of the present invention embodiments (e.g.,
private contact sharing components) may be available on a
non-transitory computer useable medium (e.g., magnetic or optical
mediums, magneto-optic mediums, floppy diskettes, CD-ROM, DVD,
memory devices, etc.) of a stationary or portable program product
apparatus or device for use with stand-alone systems or systems
connected by a network or other communications medium.
[0073] The communication network may be implemented by any number
of any type of communications network (e.g., LAN, WAN, Internet,
Intranet, VPN, etc.). The computer or other processing systems of
the present invention embodiments may include any conventional or
other communications devices to communicate over the network via
any conventional or other protocols. The computer or other
processing systems may utilize any type of connection (e.g., wired,
wireless, etc.) for access to the network. Local communication
media may be implemented by any suitable communication media (e.g.,
local area network (LAN), hardwire, wireless link, Intranet,
etc.).
[0074] The system may employ any number of any conventional or
other databases, data stores or storage structures (e.g., files,
databases, data structures, data or other repositories, etc.) to
store information (e.g., contacts, contact lists, obfuscation data,
information elements, cryptographic keys, cryptographic key
exchange protocols, and/or other information used in or associated
with obscured contact sharing or using obscured contacts). The
database system may be implemented by any number of any
conventional or other databases, data stores or storage structures
(e.g., files, databases, data structures, data or other
repositories, etc.) to store information (e.g., contacts, contact
lists, obfuscation data, information elements, cryptographic keys,
cryptographic key exchange protocols, and/or other information used
in or associated with obscured contact sharing or using obscured
contacts). The database system may be included within or coupled to
the server and/or client systems. The database systems and/or
storage structures may be remote from or local to the computer or
other processing systems, and may store any desired data (e.g.,
contacts, contact lists, obfuscation data, information elements,
cryptographic keys, cryptographic key exchange protocols, and/or
other information used in or associated with obscured contact
sharing or using obscured contacts).
[0075] The present invention embodiments may employ any number of
any type of user interface (e.g., Graphical User Interface (GUI),
command-line, prompt, etc.) for obtaining or providing information
(e.g., contacts, contact lists, obfuscation data, information
elements, cryptographic keys, cryptographic key exchange protocols,
and/or other information used in or associated with obscured
contact sharing or using obscured contacts), where the interface
may include any information arranged in any fashion. The interface
may include any number of any types of input or actuation
mechanisms (e.g., buttons, icons, fields, boxes, links, etc.)
disposed at any locations to enter/display information and initiate
desired actions via any suitable input devices (e.g., mouse,
keyboard, etc.). The interface screens may include any suitable
actuators (e.g., links, tabs, etc.) to navigate between the screens
in any fashion.
[0076] The report may include any information arranged in any
fashion, and may be configurable based on rules or other criteria
to provide desired information to a user (e.g., text analytics,
profile scores, demographic information pertaining to the document
author, etc.).
[0077] The present invention embodiments are not limited to the
specific tasks or algorithms described above, but may be utilized
for obscured contact sharing and using obscured contacts.
[0078] The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing
particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of
the invention. As used herein, the singular forms "a", "an" and
"the" are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the
context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood
that the terms "comprises", "comprising", "includes", "including",
"has", "have", "having", "with" and the like, when used in this
specification, specify the presence of stated features, integers,
steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude
the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers,
steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof.
[0079] The corresponding structures, materials, acts, and
equivalents of all means or step plus function elements in the
claims below are intended to include any structure, material, or
act for performing the function in combination with other claimed
elements as specifically claimed. The description of the present
invention has been presented for purposes of illustration and
description, but is not intended to be exhaustive or limited to the
invention in the form disclosed. Many modifications and variations
will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art without
departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. The
embodiment was chosen and described in order to best explain the
principles of the invention and the practical application, and to
enable others of ordinary skill in the art to understand the
invention for various embodiments with various modifications as are
suited to the particular use contemplated.
[0080] The descriptions of the various embodiments of the present
invention have been presented for purposes of illustration, but are
not intended to be exhaustive or limited to the embodiments
disclosed. Many modifications and variations will be apparent to
those of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the scope
and spirit of the described embodiments. The terminology used
herein was chosen to best explain the principles of the
embodiments, the practical application or technical improvement
over technologies found in the marketplace, or to enable others of
ordinary skill in the art to understand the embodiments disclosed
herein.
[0081] The present invention may be a system, a method, and/or a
computer program product at any possible technical detail level of
integration. The computer program product may include a computer
readable storage medium (or media) having computer readable program
instructions thereon for causing a processor to carry out aspects
of the present invention.
[0082] The computer readable storage medium can be a tangible
device that can retain and store instructions for use by an
instruction execution device. The computer readable storage medium
may be, for example, but is not limited to, an electronic storage
device, a magnetic storage device, an optical storage device, an
electromagnetic storage device, a semiconductor storage device, or
any suitable combination of the foregoing. A non-exhaustive list of
more specific examples of the computer readable storage medium
includes the following: a portable computer diskette, a hard disk,
a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable
programmable read-only memory (EPROM or Flash memory), a static
random access memory (SRAM), a portable compact disc read-only
memory (CD-ROM), a digital versatile disk (DVD), a memory stick, a
floppy disk, a mechanically encoded device such as punch-cards or
raised structures in a groove having instructions recorded thereon,
and any suitable combination of the foregoing. A computer readable
storage medium, as used herein, is not to be construed as being
transitory signals per se, such as radio waves or other freely
propagating electromagnetic waves, electromagnetic waves
propagating through a waveguide or other transmission media (e.g.,
light pulses passing through a fiber-optic cable), or electrical
signals transmitted through a wire.
[0083] Computer readable program instructions described herein can
be downloaded to respective computing/processing devices from a
computer readable storage medium or to an external computer or
external storage device via a network, for example, the Internet, a
local area network, a wide area network and/or a wireless network.
The network may comprise copper transmission cables, optical
transmission fibers, wireless transmission, routers, firewalls,
switches, gateway computers and/or edge servers. A network adapter
card or network interface in each computing/processing device
receives computer readable program instructions from the network
and forwards the computer readable program instructions for storage
in a computer readable storage medium within the respective
computing/processing device.
[0084] Computer readable program instructions for carrying out
operations of the present invention may be assembler instructions,
instruction-set-architecture (ISA) instructions, machine
instructions, machine dependent instructions, microcode, firmware
instructions, state-setting data, configuration data for integrated
circuitry, or either source code or object code written in any
combination of one or more programming languages, including an
object oriented programming language such as Smalltalk, C++, or the
like, and procedural programming languages, such as the "C"
programming language or similar programming languages. The computer
readable program instructions may execute entirely on the user's
computer, partly on the user's computer, as a stand-alone software
package, partly on the user's computer and partly on a remote
computer or entirely on the remote computer or server. In the
latter scenario, the remote computer may be connected to the user's
computer through any type of network, including a local area
network (LAN) or a wide area network (WAN), or the connection may
be made to an external computer (for example, through the Internet
using an Internet Service Provider). In some embodiments,
electronic circuitry including, for example, programmable logic
circuitry, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGA), or programmable
logic arrays (PLA) may execute the computer readable program
instructions by utilizing state information of the computer
readable program instructions to personalize the electronic
circuitry, in order to perform aspects of the present
invention.
[0085] Aspects of the present invention are described herein with
reference to flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams of
methods, apparatus (systems), and computer program products
according to embodiments of the invention. It will be understood
that each block of the flowchart illustrations and/or block
diagrams, and combinations of blocks in the flowchart illustrations
and/or block diagrams, can be implemented by computer readable
program instructions.
[0086] These computer readable program instructions may be provided
to a processor of a computer, or other programmable data processing
apparatus to produce a machine, such that the instructions, which
execute via the processor of the computer or other programmable
data processing apparatus, create means for implementing the
functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram
block or blocks. These computer readable program instructions may
also be stored in a computer readable storage medium that can
direct a computer, a programmable data processing apparatus, and/or
other devices to function in a particular manner, such that the
computer readable storage medium having instructions stored therein
comprises an article of manufacture including instructions which
implement aspects of the function/act specified in the flowchart
and/or block diagram block or blocks.
[0087] The computer readable program instructions may also be
loaded onto a computer, other programmable data processing
apparatus, or other device to cause a series of operational steps
to be performed on the computer, other programmable apparatus or
other device to produce a computer implemented process, such that
the instructions which execute on the computer, other programmable
apparatus, or other device implement the functions/acts specified
in the flowchart and/or block diagram block or blocks.
[0088] The flowchart and block diagrams in the Figures illustrate
the architecture, functionality, and operation of possible
implementations of systems, methods, and computer program products
according to various embodiments of the present invention. In this
regard, each block in the flowchart or block diagrams may represent
a module, segment, or portion of instructions, which comprises one
or more executable instructions for implementing the specified
logical function(s). In some alternative implementations, the
functions noted in the blocks may occur out of the order noted in
the Figures. For example, two blocks shown in succession may, in
fact, be accomplished as one step, executed concurrently,
substantially concurrently, in a partially or wholly temporally
overlapping manner, or the blocks may sometimes be executed in the
reverse order, depending upon the functionality involved. It will
also be noted that each block of the block diagrams and/or
flowchart illustration, and combinations of blocks in the block
diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, can be implemented by
special purpose hardware-based systems that perform the specified
functions or acts or carry out combinations of special purpose
hardware and computer instructions.
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